NANTWICH'S Easter Jazz and Blues Festival was a fantastic success but organisers say Prime Minister Tony Blair should have been there.

The four-day festival attracted a record 25,000 people to the town, and left director Phil Martin wondering how he could make even more improvements next year.

But Mr Martin said a letter he had sent to Tony Blair, inviting himself or another top member of the Cabinet, had been ignored.

He said: 'We have had Mr Blair telling us all on TV that the countryside is open, despite foot and mouth, and we thought it would be a great public relations exercise for himself and the Government if someone showed their face at Nantwich.

'Not only did no-one come but we did not even have a reply to the letter, which I thought was very rude. But our fifth annual festival was by far the most successful, minister or no minister.'